Hi, I’m Amy Cesari, author of the Lilac Skully series!
I wrote this series for the weird kid that lives inside of many of us (all of us?) no matter how old we are.
Lilac Skully is that weird kid. So much that she doesn’t know how to express herself and accidentally becomes even stranger to the outside world. Lilac’s story is about finding and accepting your authentic self…
And of course, it’s about ghosts!
… And witches, spooks, little girls, cats, and all sorts of other awesome paranormal and supernatural creatures.
To fill you in on some of the weird and wonderful influences that are going into this series, here is a list of 5 facts, 1 secret of Skully Manor, and some of my favorite books, movies, and spooky things.
FUN FACTS:
- Confession: Lilac Skully is a middle-grade series (secretly!) written for adults who like middle-grade. Kids will like it too, of course. But why should they have all the haunted fun?!
- I grew up in a hundred-year-old house, just like Lilac. My house wasn’t haunted, but it did have its share of creaky, creepy, quirky things about it… especially the terrifying basement.
- Mr. Fright was inspired by my older sister, who used to chase me up the stairs (of that same basement) while she pretended to be a zombie. It would HORRIFY me! She thought it was hilarious. Yep, thanks, Laura!
- Now, my sister proofreads the Lilac Skully books. Thanks, Laura!
- The idea for Lilac Skully came while I was waiting in line at the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. Crowds of people were excited to go in… but what if you were a little girl living alone in a haunted house… with nowhere else to go?!
A SECRET FROM SKULLY MANOR!:
- Three of the ghosts of Skully Manor met their deaths with poisoned tea and cake.
Bet you didn’t know that!
And here are some of my favorite books, movies, and TV shows that influence this series!
Scooby Doo
Beetlejuice
Coraline (movie and the book!)
Casper The Friendly Ghost
Nightmare Before Christmas
Anything spooky from Disney
The Witches by Roald Dahl
Mad Monster Party
The Graveyard Book
A Series of Unfortunate Events
80’s Halloween Cartoon Specials
Ghostbusters
Donnie Darko
Corpse Bride
The Worst Witch
Thanks for checking out the books, hope you love Lilac as much as I do!
-Amy Cesari